Plane Family - Geographic Distribution

Of the 7-10 species in the plane family, all but two are native to North America. Three species are native to the United States. The well-known American sycamore grows in moist alluvial soils in central and eastern North America. The two other American species are small trees of western United States. The Arizona sycamore (Platanus wrightii) grows along stream banks in Arizona and New Mexico. The California sycamore (Platanus racemosa) grows along stream banks in the Sierra Nevada region.

Two species in the Plane family are from Europe and Asia. The Oriental planetree (Platanus orientalis) is native to the Balkans and Himalayas, and Platanus kerrii is native to Indochina.